Two Rb-Sr Whole Rock Isochrons from Plutons In the Cobequid Highlands, Nova Scotia, Canada

Two Rb-Sr Hhole rock isochrons have been obtained from plutons In the Cobequid Highlands of Nova Scotia: the Debert River and Hart Lake-Byers Lake Plutons. The undeformed, unfoilated Debert River Pluton yielded an age of 596± 70 Ma and an Initial 87Sr/88Sr ratio of 0.7059 ± 0.0007. This age places an upper age limit on the detonation recorded In the Folly River Schist (youngest unit of the Bass River Complex), the d I or I tic Frog Lake Pluton, and the sedimentary rocks immediately north and east of the Debert River Pluton. The Hart Lake-Byers Lake Pluton yielded anageof348±5Maandan Initial 87Sr/88Sr ratio of 0.7046 ± 0.0008. The similarity of this age to that of the adjacent felsic volcanics of the Byers Brook For nation suggests that they are comagmatic and confine that a Carboniferous igneous event forms an Important part of the geological history of the Cobequid Highlands. The Initial 87Sr/88Sr ratio and the blotite-hornblende content of the two granites suggest a mafic Igneous loner crustal source or possible untie component for the magma. RÉSUMÉ Les plutons de Debert River et Hart Lake-Byers Lake dans les monts Cobequld en Nouvel le-Écosse ont livre deux isochrones Rb-Sr de roche globale. Il déformé ni fellé, le pluton de Debert River a donné un âge de 596± 70 Ma et un rapport 87Sr/88Sr initial de 0.7059 ± 0.0007. Ceci place une limite supérieure sur l’âge de la déformation enregistrée dans le schiste de Folly River (L’unité la plus jeune du complexe de Bass River), le pluton diorltique de Frog Lake et dans les roches sédimentaires Jouxtant le pluton de Debert River au nord et à l’est. Le pluton de Hart Lake-Byers Lake à produit un âge de 348 ± 5 Ma et un rapport isotopique 87Sr/88Sr initial de 0.7046 ± 0.008. Cet âge, similaire à ceux des volcanites felslques adjacentes de la formation de Byers Brook, suggére qu'lis sent comagnatiques, signe evident qu'un épisode igné carbonifère forme l’un des faits majeurs de L’histoire géologique des monts Cobequid. Le rapport 87Sr/88Sr initial et la teneur en blotite et hornbIende de ces deux granites suggérent une genèse crustale profonde du magma avec une possible contribution mantellique. [Traduit par le journal

Pressure Tuning of the Charge Density Wave in the Halogen-Bridged Transition-Metal (MX) Solid Pt2Br6(NH3)4Pt_2Br_6(NH_3)_4

We report the pressure dependence up to 95 kbar of Raman active stretching modes in the quasi-one-dimensional MX chain solid $Pt_2Br_6(NH_3)_4$. The data indicate that a predicted pressure-induced insulator-to-metal transition does not occur, but are consistent with the solid undergoing either a three-dimensional structural distortion, or a transition from a charge-density wave to another broken-symmetry ground state. We show that such a transition cacan be well-modeled within a Peierls-Hubbard Hamiltonian. 1993 PACS: 71.30.+h, 71.45.Lr, 75.30.Fv, 78.30.-j, 81.40.VwComment: 4 pages, ReVTeX 3.0, figures available from the authors on request (Gary Kanner, [email protected]), to be published in Phys Rev B Rapid Commun, REVISION: minor typos corrected, LA-UR-94-246

The impact of a gender-specific physical activity intervention on the fitness and fatness profile of men in Ireland

Background: Amid increasing concerns about rising obesity rates and unhealthy lifestyle behaviours, physical activity (PA) is seen as a prophylactic to many chronic conditions affecting men. Men respond best to community-based PA programmes, using gender-specific promotional and delivery strategies. ‘Men on the Move’ (MOM) was developed on this basis and targeted inactive adult men in Ireland. Methods: Sedentary men (n=927; age=50.7±10.9yr; Weight=92.7±16.0kg; METS=6.06±2.13) were recruited across 8 counties; 4 ‘intervention group’ (IG; n=501), and 4 ‘comparison-in-waiting group’ (CG; n=426). The MOM programme involved structured group exercise twice weekly for 12 weeks, along with health-related workshops with the groups maintained up to 52W. Primary outcome measures (aerobic fitness, bodyweight and waist circumference (WC)) together with self-administered questionnaires were used to gather participant data at baseline, 12, 26 and 52 weeks (W). Results: Results show a net positive effect on aerobic fitness, bodyweight and WC, with significant (p<0.05) net change scores observed in the IG compared to the CG (METS: 12W=+2.20, 26W=+1.89, 52W=+0.92; Weight: 12W=-1.72kg, 26W=-1.95kg, 52W=-1.89kg; WC: 12W=-4.54cm, 26W=-2.69cm, 52W=-3.16cm). The corresponding reduction in cardiovascular disease risk is particularly significant in the context of a previously inactive and overweight cohort. The high ‘dropout’ (42.7% presenting at 52W) however, is of particular concern, with ‘dropouts’ having lower levels of aerobic fitness and higher bodyweight/WC at baseline. Conclusions: Notwithstanding dropout issues, findings address an important gap in public health practice by informing the translational scale-up of a small controllable gender-specific PA intervention, MOM, to a national population based PA intervention targeting inactive men

Evaluation of a gender-sensitive physical activity programme for inactive men in Ireland: Protocol paper for a pragmatic controlled trial

The excess burden of ill-health, mortality and premature death experienced by many men, and poorer men in particular, across the developed world has prompted calls for the development of gender sensitised health related services for men. An emergent body of evidence indicates that successful public health work with men can be accomplished when it utilises elements with which men are familiar and secure. In particular, physical activity (PA) is proven here to be a useful ‘hook’ to engage men. ‘Men on the Move’ (MoM) is a community-based PA programme designed to engage inactive men to improve their overall health and well-being. The MoM programme was delivered by practitioner partnerships in diverse communities and among diverse groups of men under ‘real world’ conditions to assess both its efficacy and replicability with a view to scaling-up the programme nationally for population wide impact. Establishing appropriate protocols is critical when conducting research that translates into practice, is replicable in practice and can be disseminated at a population level. The purpose of this paper is to detail the protocols used in the design, implementation and evaluation of the MoM programme. Specifically, the process of engaging men in a community based PA intervention and sustaining that engagement over the 12 weeks and the protocols used to evaluate the impact of participation in MoM on biopsychosocial health up to 52 weeks will be outlined. If the intervention proves successful, gender-sensitive community based PA interventions for men could be a promising avenue to address their health needs. These findings may be of support to both practitioners endeavouring to engage men and others engaged in translational research to ensure their research translates to meaningful action in practice

Impact of supplemental home enteral feeding postesophagectomy on nutrition, body composition, quality of life, and patient satisfaction

The aim of this prospective cohort study is to analyze the impact of supplemental home enteral nutrition (HEN) post-esophageal cancer surgery on nutritional parameters, quality of life (QL), and patient satisfaction. A systematic review reported that over 60% of patients lose \u3e10% of both body weight and BMI by 6 months after esophagectomy. Enteral feeding (EF) is increasingly a modern standard postoperatively; however, the impact of extended HEN postdischarge has not been systematically studied. One hundred forty-nine consecutive patients [mean age 62 ± 9, 80% male,76% adenocarcinoma, 66% on multimodal protocols, and 69% with BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2] were studied. Jejunal EF commenced day 1 postoperatively, and supplemental overnight HEN (764 kcal; 32g protein) continued on discharge for a planned further 4 weeks. Weight, BMI, and body composition analysis (bioimpedance analysis) were measured at baseline, preoperatively and at 1, 3, and 6 months, along with the EORTC QLQ-C30/OES18 QL measures. A patient satisfaction questionnaire addressed eight key items in relation to HEN (max score 100/item). Median (range) total duration of EF was 49 days (28-96). Overall compliance was 96%. At 6 months, compared with preoperatively, 58 (39%) patients lost \u3e10% weight, with median (IQR) loss of 6.8 (4-9) kg, and 62 (41%) patients lost \u3e10% BMI. Lean body mass and body fat were significantly (p \u3c 0.001) decreased. Mean global QL decreased (p \u3c 0.01) from 82 to 72. A high mean satisfaction score (\u3e70 ± 11/100) was reported, \u3e80 for practical training, activities of daily living, pain, anxiety, recovery and impact on caregivers, with lower scores for appetite (33 ± 24) and sleep (63 ± 30). Supplemental HEN for a minimum of one month postdischarge is associated with high compliance and patient satisfaction. Weight and BMI loss may still be substantial, however this may be less than published literature, in addition the impact on HR-QL may be attenuated. HEN has both subjective and objective rationale and merits further validation toward optimizing nutritional recovery and overall wellbeing

Mechanics and dynamics of X-chromosome pairing at X inactivation

At the onset of X-chromosome inactivation, the vital process whereby female mammalian cells equalize X products with respect to males, the X chromosomes are colocalized along their Xic (X-inactivation center) regions. The mechanism inducing recognition and pairing of the X’s remains, though, elusive. Starting from recent discoveries on the molecular factors and on the DNA sequences (the so-called "pairing sites") involved, we dissect the mechanical basis of Xic colocalization by using a statistical physics model. We show that soluble DNA-specific binding molecules, such as those experimentally identified, can be indeed sufficient to induce the spontaneous colocalization of the homologous chromosomes but only when their concentration, or chemical affinity, rises above a threshold value as a consequence of a thermodynamic phase transition. We derive the likelihood of pairing and its probability distribution. Chromosome dynamics has two stages: an initial independent Brownian diffusion followed, after a characteristic time scale, by recognition and pairing. Finally, we investigate the effects of DNA deletion/insertions in the region of pairing sites and compare model predictions to available experimental data

Interaction of Gold Nanoparticles in Barium Titanate Thin Films

A novel approach to control the grain size of oxide thin film materials has been investigated. Perovskite BaTiO3 shows interesting grain structures when deposited on gold predeposited, (111)-oriented, singlecrystal SrTiO3 substrates. Solid oxide films grow epitaxially on patterned seed layers and show variations in grain size relative to the films deposited on SrTiO3 directly.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure

Politicians must heed health effects of climate change.

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Reaching beyond the ‘worried well’: pre-adoption characteristics of participants in ‘Men on the Move’, a community-based physical activity programme

Background Issues surrounding gender and men’s health have become an increasing focus of public health globally. Unhealthy lifestyles and lower engagement in health promotion initiatives contributed to lower life expectancy and higher mortality rates among men. This study presents the pre-adoption characteristics of men who registered for ‘Men on the Move’—a community-based physical activity (CBPA) programme, to ascertain whether the programme reached its intended target group, i.e. ‘at-risk’ adult men who did not meet physical activity (PA) guidelines and were likely to have multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods Multiple recruitment strategies were adopted to engage the target group and baseline data collection included a range of demographic, self-report and outcome measures. Results The recruitment strategy succeeded in reaching the target group, with the majority (n = 927) presenting being previously inactive (89.0%), overweight/obese (89.7%) and having multiple CVD risk factors (53.1% ≥ 2 risk factors). However, the strategy was less successful in engaging ‘hard-to-reach’ groups, with the majority being middle-aged, white, married/cohabiting, educated and employed. Conclusions A gender-sensitized, partnership and community outreach recruitment strategy can maximize the reach and recruitment of an ‘at-risk’ cohort for CBPA initiatives, but more targeted approaches are needed to recruit marginalized groups of men

‘The environment was like they were in the pub but with no alcohol’ - A process evaluation of engagement and sustainability in Men on the Move an Irish community-based physical activity intervention

Men’s health and life expectancy, particularly for those men from lower socioeconomic groups, remains an issue of concern in Ireland. This concern is reflected in the recent National Men’s Health Action Plan where important priority has been placed on finding appropriate ways to garner sustained involvement in health promotion interventions for men. Physical activity (PA) has been shown to be a useful ‘hook’ to assist with such engagement. ‘Men on the Move’ (MOM) is a 12 week, community-based, gender-sensitised, PA programme established as a pragmatic controlled trial and aimed at improving the health and well-being of inactive men. The programme was co-created with Local Sports Partnerships (LSP), delivered by experienced PA Coordinators (PACs), and often supported by local community champions. This paper reports on the process evaluation of the MOM programme using data collected from focus groups with the LSP’s and those involved in delivering MOM from all eight counties that took part. Findings highlight the importance of negotiated partnerships at and between national and local levels in terms of providing support, consistent guidance and appropriately branded materials to the LSP’s. The underpinning inclusive ethos of MOM, embodied by the PAC’s, led to the creation of a fun, inclusive and comfortable atmosphere that helped sustain men’s involvement. This was aided by the use of male familiar settings through which to deliver the programme. While PA focused, findings here suggest a much wider impact on mental well-being and social connection and that this was achieved in a very cost-effective way. Importantly, men’s health training (ENGAGE) was a key factor in programme design and implementation assisting in building capacity among service providers to work with men. Joined up service provision and drawing on existing, trusted, local community networks were vital to recruiting men into the programme. Finally, the potential for MOM to signpost and offer an aftercare plan to community support for the men beyond the 12-week programme was noted as important particularly where there is increased need of these among more marginalised groups of men. This process evaluation provides a good example of how health promotion interventions need to recognise and exploit the fact that health and well-being are integrally linked to the communities where people live out and experience their daily lives. Ensuring that MOM was embedded within existing community structures, and supported by community champions with the requisite skills and local knowledge, underpinned programme success and sustainability